addition, he was concerned about who would sing the tenor role when he had been unable to obtain Rubini's release from his Naples contract. Fortunately, having received good reports of the young tenor Domenico Reina, he was able to secure his services, describing him in a letter to Florimo as "one who will want to do himself honour; everyone tells me that his voice is beautiful, and that he has all the acting and spirit one could wish for." Following Romani's recovery, the libretto was delivered piecemeal, but Bellini set to work again, albeit that progress was slow. By 7 January 1829, with Romani having recovered and set off for Venice to fulfill another contract, the composer was "almost up to the 2nd act". Filippo Cicconetti, in his 1859 biography, gives an account of Bellini's working methods, explaining how he set texts to music always with the words in front of him in order to see how inspired to compose he might become. When it came time to compose the final aria Or sei pago, o ciel tremendo, the librettist's words gave him no inspiration at all and, at their next meeting, Romani agreed to re-write the text. Returning within half an hour, the second version left Bellini equally cold—as did a third draft. Finally, when asked what it was that he was seeking, Bellini replied: "I want a thought that will be at one and the same time a prayer, an imprecation, a warning, a delirium....". A fourth draft was quickly prepared: "Have I entered into your spirit?" asked the librettist—and he was immediately embraced by the young composer who was totally satisfied. Rehearsals began in early January with the premiere planned for 14 February 1829. Performance historyThe premiereThe opera was an immediate success and, in the words of the writer for the Gazzetta privilegiata di Milano, a clamorous success...[with] the poet [serving] the composer well, and the composer could not have served the singers better; all competed to render themselves pleasing to the public, and succeeded in such a way as to be applauded greatly. Three days later, the same publication praised the quality of the music, describing Bellini as "a modern Orpheus" for the beauty of his melodies. Reporting to Romani, who was still in Venice, Bellini gave an account of the success: "The thing went as we never had imagined it. We were in seventh heaven.